I ran across this blog post today: A future I would want to live in, by game designer Brie Code.
It argues that too much of our science fiction, and in particular our games, are based on dystopian visions of the future. It further argues that instead of basing all our drama and engagement on the fight-or-flight response, we could base it instead on the “tend-and-befriend” response of forming and nurturing bonds with others. And it ends by painting a very interesting and positive picture of the near-term future (maybe 20-30 years from now, I’d guess).
I don’t agree with all the details in this essay, but I certainly agree with the broad strokes — dystopian stories are essentially negative goal-setting, focusing on the worst in humanity. On an individual level, we can certainly exert some control over our destinies by where we choose to focus; I see no reason why that shouldn’t be true at a societal level too. Indeed, it’s not hard to think of very concrete examples where focusing on fear and hate has led societies to make some very poor decisions, which breed more fear and hate. So sure, this makes dystopian futures believable — but also demonstrates that we have control. Maybe if we focused more on positive futures (Star Trek, I’m looking at you), then we’d have a better chance of actually creating that sort of future for ourselves and our descendants.
And then there’s the more concrete, business-of-the-games-industry argument that most of our current games only appeal to current gamers. Practically the entire house is built on a foundation of mass violence and murder, and many designers today still think this is the only sellable foundation for a game. This despite games like The Sims and Wii Play being among the top 10 highest-grossing games of all time.
But enough from me. Go read the article — it’s long, but worth it! And then please share your thoughts.